that, if he be not deceitful, he is stupid."'
Another day, the duke asked Tsze-sze, saying, 'Can my state
be made to flourish?' 'It may,' was the reply. 'And how?' Tsze-sze
said, 'O prince, if you and your ministers will only strive to
realize the government of the duke of Chau and of Po-ch'in;
practising their transforming principles, sending forth wide the
favours of your ducal house, and not letting advantages flow in
private channels; if you will thus conciliate the affections of the
people, and at the same time cultivate friendly relations with
neighboring states, your state will soon begin to flourish.'
On one occasion, the duke asked whether it had been the
custom of old for ministers to go into mourning for a prince
whose service and state they had left. Tsze-sze replied to him,
'Of old, princes advanced their ministers to office according to
propriety, and dismissed them in the same way, and hence there
was that rule. But now-a-days, princes bring their ministers
forward as if they were going to take them on their knees, and
send them away as if they would cast them into an abyss. If they
do not treat them as their greatest enemies, it is well.-- How can
you expect the ancient practice to be observed in such
circumstances [1]?'
These instances may suffice to illustrate the character of
Tsze-sze, as it was displayed in his intercourse with the princes
of his time. We see the same independence which he affected in
private life, and a dignity not unbecoming the grandson of
Confucius. But we miss the reach of thought and capacity for
administration which belonged to the Sage. It is with him, how-

1 This conversation is given in the Li Chi, II. Sect. II. Pt. ii, 1.